Time has passed quickly since Carnival Cruise Line announced it would be sending a cruise ship back to Mobile, Alabama. Next month, Carnival Cruise Line will officially once again begin cruising from Mobile, Alabama. The Carnival Fantasy's first scheduled departure date from Mobile is November 9, 2016. Since 2011, Carnival Cruise Line has not deployed a ship to regularly sail from Mobile, Alabama. After the Carnival Elation left in 2011 for New Orleans, Mobile lost its year round Carnival cruise ship. It is important to note, the Carnival Fantasy has sailed from Mobile in the past. However, at that time, the ship did not have the same upgrades it has now. Earlier this year, the Carnival Fantasy was upgraded and renovated to get ready for its new Mobile homeport. Carnival's Guy's Burger Joint, Blue Iguana Cantina, Red Frog Rum Bar, and Blue Iguana Tequila Bar were added to the ship during its most recent dry-dock. In addition, the Carnival Fantasy was upgraded several years ago to have Carnival's WaterWorks, a tropical themed lido pool, and the Serenity Adults Only Retreat. While the Carnival Fantasy is an older ship, it has many features and attractions that can be found throughout the Carnival fleet.

Carnival Cruise Line offers a 24 hour pizzeria on all of its ships. Typically, the pizzeria is located in or around the Carnival ship's Lido deck buffet. The location will vary slightly by ship because each class of ships have a different layout. ​ Having pizza available 24 hours means you can have it whenever you want on your cruise. Some times, such as lunch and afternoon hours, are the pizzeria's most popular time. If you want pizza for lunch or in the afternoon on a sea day, be prepared for a line, but in many cases the line will move fast. From my experience, most port of call days are less busy and a line can be short to non-existent. At night, the pizzeria is also popular. Many cruisers want a late night snack or something to eat after most dining areas are closed for the day. I have been to the pizzeria late at night and there was a line. Since the pizzeria is open 24 hours, this means you can have pizza for breakfast if that is what you want! I have seen cruisers eat pizza for breakfast, but I have not done this personally. Over the course of the last several years, Carnival has been working to change it pizzeria style and menu. The vast majority of Carnival ships offer the following choices: Margheriti, Fungi, Pepperoni, Quattro Formaggi, and Proscuitto. This menu is much simpler than the old style menu. If your Carnival ship happens to have the old style menu, this menu will have a few more choices. Can I get my pizza customized? While this is not a standard thing, there are some pizzeria crew members that will make custom orders. This depends on the person working the pizzeria. Personally, my special requests have been fulfilled at times, but at other times my requests have been denied.

The Carnival Sensation is Carnival Cruise Line's third oldest ship in the fleet at this time, but the ship is filled with many spaces and amenities for cruisers to enjoy. This article will give some basic facts about the ship and tips for cruisers that will be sailing on the Carnival Sensation in the future.

Basic Facts: The Carnival Sensation launched into service in 1993 after being built in Finland. The Carnival Sensation, as well as many other Carnival ships, is registered in Panama. The ship's fact sheet reports there are 920 crew members and 2,056 guests (double occupancy). The ship may not be the largest in today's cruise industry, but it weighs over 70,000 tons and is about 855 feet long. The Carnival Sensation is a member of Carnival's Fantasy class ships, which consists of 8 ships in Carnival's fleet. The other ships in Carnival's Fantasy Class are the Carnival Fantasy, Carnival Ecstasy, Carnival Fascination, Carnival Imagination, Carnival Inspiration, Carnival Elation, and Carnival Paradise. For more interesting facts about the ship click hereto view the Carnival Sensation's fact sheet.

Some Highlights Of The Ship's Features and Places:

Carnival's WaterWorks: ​ The Carnival Sensation's WaterWorks consists of a splash pad and multiple waterslides. To get on the waterslides you will have to go up to Deck 12's aft, by the ship's funnel. The waterslides will land on Deck 11 (the Verandah Deck). For those that have cruised the Carnival Sensation in the long ago past, the WaterWorks replaced the aft pool on Deck 11. This feature was added in a dry-dock several years ago.

Serenity Adults Only Retreat: Cruises are often filled with children and some adults want to get away from kids. Carnival designed and implemented an area on the Carnival Sensation referred to as the Serenity that is for adults that are 21 & older only. This area is located at the very back of Deck 9, which is the Promenade Deck. There are two ways to get to this area. The first way is to walk down stairs from the Lido Deck's very back area. The second way is to use exit doors located in the Plaza AFT Lounge. The Serenity Adults Only Retreat on the Carnival Sensation is located directly behind the Plaza AFT Lounge.

Fantasia Main Show Lounge​ The Fantasia Main Show Lounge is the Carnival Sensation's main show lounge. This is where the ship's production shows take place as well as some other entertainment activities that draw larger audiences. The Fantasia Main Show Lounge is located on two decks. The bottom level of the lounge is on the Atlantic Deck (Deck 8) and the upper level of the lounge is located on the Promenade Deck (Deck 9).

Seaview Bar & Grill The Seaview Bar & Grill is the Carnival Sensation's Lido Deck buffet. The buffet is located at the back of the Lido Deck, which is Deck 10. In the buffet you will find many different food lines that have some different options depending on the day and meal being served. Also, the Carnival Sensation's pizzeria and deli are located at the very back of the Lido buffet.

Sensation Boulevard Promenade On the Carnival Sensation's Promenade Deck (Deck 9) you will find an area called Sensation Boulevard Promenade. A cruiser walking down this walkway will see the Club Vegas Casino, Mirage Bar, Michelangelo Lounge, Kaleidoscope Discotheque, Joe's Cafe, and the Polo Lounge.

Some Helpful Tips and Tricks:

If you are trying to walk from the front to the back of the ship (or vice versa) almost all decks will be able to get you from one end to the other. However, the Atlantic Deck will not because the dining room galley is in the middle of the deck. Also, Decks 12 and 14 are split and will not allow a cruiser to get from one end to the other.

The Carnival Senesation has the full selection of Carnival's youth programs onboard. For those that are interested, the Circle C lounge is located on the Atlantic Deck in the atrium, the Club 02 lounge is located on the Promenade Deck in the atrium, and the Camp Carnival lounge is located on the Verandah Deck. Each youth program has different age restrictions and may not always meet in these lounges. Each program has an activity schedule that give's information about the voyage's youth activities, the times of these activities, and where these activities will take place.

The Carnival Sensation's atrium has two glass elevators. These elevators are sometimes a little slow, but offer a great view of the atrium below.

On the Carnival Sensation's lido deck, around the middle, you will see a covered stage. On one side of this stage is a glass dome that has a stairwell. This stairwell will take you down into the middle area of Sensation Boulevard Promenade on the Promenade Deck. For those needing to get from the Lido Deck to the middle of the ship quickly, consider using this stairwell.

At the front of the Carnival Sensation's Verandah Deck (Deck 11), there is a door that will allow cruisers to go outside onto an observation deck. This observation deck is directly above the ship's navigational bridge. The best way to get to this observation deck is to walk to the front of the Verandah Deck to the area where the Verandah Deck staterooms begin. You will have a choice to go left or right. Take the hallway to the left and at the very front of this hallway you should see a door that leads to the outside. Once you open this door there will be another door only a few feet away that you will have to open before being completely outside on the deck.